White, Msu Defense Too Much For Iowa

October 04, 1987|By Bob Logan, Chicago Tribune.

IOWA CITY — In case you wonder why Michigan State upset Iowa 19-14 Saturday, assign equal credit to the Spartans` Wonder Man and their wonderful defense.

In one brilliant afternoon, tailback Lorenzo White brought the Spartans back to life and resurrected his own Heisman Trophy chances. White`s 166 yards on 39 carries was an eye-popping performance, but so was MSU`s bone-jarring defensive dominance.

They blanked the Hawkeyes in the second half, steamrollering them for minus-47 yards rushing, mostly on three devastating sacks. Iowa quarterback Dan McGwire was knocked out of action when Tim Moore and Kurt Larson leveled him on a linebacker blitz midway in the fourth quarter.

White had averaged only 82 rushing yards in his first three games. Both he and the Spartans had been written off as a Big 10 factor, though that script was shredded in this league opener.

``Lorenzo always makes that one jitter, then a spin,`` marveled Iowa defensive end Joe Mott. ``He`s so durable. We kept hitting him without slowing him down.``

White`s work was all the more remarkable because MSU quarterback Bobby McAllister completed only 2 of 10 passes for 13 yards. A new split-back formation, employed for the first time Saturday, gave White the option to go inside or outside, and he made the most of it.

``They stopped our (setback) offense last year, so we tried this to give me more room to run,`` White said. ``I waited for the Iowa defense to react, and when they went one way, I went in the other direction.

``The Heisman Trophy is an individual thing, and it would be nice to win in my senior year. But my role in the offense is to get the first down or whatever else it takes for us to win games.``

The mere threat of White was enough to open things up for the visitors`

sputtering offense. While the Hawkeyes were shadowing him, Michigan State erased a 14-7 halftime deficit on two field goals by John Langeloh and an 8-yard touchdown pass from McAllister to tight end Mike Sargent.

It wasn`t an overpowering second-half showing, especially in comparison with the Spartans` defensive heroics. Still, the turnabout was startling, because a fumble had enabled Iowa to take the lead 15 seconds before the first half ended.

White and McAllister missed connections on a handoff, Iowa`s Dave Haight pouncing on the ball at the MSU 27. Five plays later, Travis Watkins beat Spartan cornerback Derrick Reed on a bump-and-run to gather in McGwire`s perfect 14-yard pass in the left corner of the end zone. The record Kinnick Stadium crowd of 67,700 settled back, figuring the gift touchdown would be the decisive turn of events.

It was, though not the way Iowa fans had envisioned. Enraged coach George Perles blistered the Spartans in the dressing room, and they responded by pitching a second-half shutout.

``No way we should have been behind at halftime,`` Perles said. ``One play (the fumble) turns the momentum around.

``I was tougher on them than I ever was before. It was a gamble on whether they`d go in the tank or get mad enough to strangle me.``

The Spartans (1-0 in the Big 10, 2-2 overall) chose to take out their ire on Iowa (0-1, 3-2), gradually gaining favorable field position. Greg Montgomery`s towering punts played a vital role in the second half, but Michigan State`s defenders really won this one.

``I never saw Coach Perles that mad before,`` said tackle Mark Nichols, who numbered a sack among his half-dozen tackles. ``We didn`t want to go back losers and face him again.``

They didn`t, and coach Hayden Fry could only shake his head at the way his Hawkeyes had been manhandled. Running back Kevin Harmon reinjured his ankle Saturday, further decimating Iowa`s shaky ground attack.

The second-half defensive adjustment that hobbled the Hawkeyes was merely a split-second delay in MSU`s pursuit.

``The Iowa defensive line position-blocks instead of firing off the ball,`` Nichols explained. ``Once we started to read their blocks, we could tee off on the quarterback.``

The vise tightened around McGwire, throttling the 6-foot-8-inch sophomore with a mere 44 yards passing in the final half. He limped off with a severe thigh bruise after linebackers Moore and Larson lowered the boom.

``McGwire was expecting us to drop off on pass coverage,`` Larson said.

``The blocking back just stood there amazed, and we both got a good hit on the quarterback.``

Chuck Hartlieb took over for the Hawkeyes and moved them to the MSU 27-yard line with a pair of pass completions. But the Spartan defense had one more big play left, and Larson made it, sacking Hartlieb for a 15-yard setback that doused Iowa`s fire.